Archive for the 'Jamaal Wilkes' Tag Under 'UCLA' Category

January 16th, 2013, 5:41 pm by Ryan Kartje, The Orange County Register

Just a month after his jersey was retired by the Lakers, former Bruin great Jamaal Wilkes will have his No. 52 jersey retired by UCLA during Thursday's game against Oregon State.

A two-time All-American and a member of two NCAA championship teams in Westwood, Wilkes averaged 15 points and 7.4 rebounds per game in three seasons with the Bruins. He went on to win four NBA championships and was named to three All-Star teams during his professional career with the Warriors, Lakers, and Clippers. Famed UCLA coach John Wooden once famously said that Wilkes was his ideal type of player.

Wilkes' jersey will be the first to be raised into the rafters at Pauley Pavilion since Gail Goodrich's was retired in 2004. It will be joined soon after by Reggie Miller's No. 31 jersey and Don Barksdale's No. 11 jersey -- both of which will be retired in the next two months.

It's safe to say that Jamaal Wilkes has made a lasting impression on the game of basketball.

He helped UCLA win a record 88 consecutive games, and played for two of the Bruins' NCAA Championship teams.

He won four NBA titles (one with Golden State, three with the Lakers), secured the NBA Rookie of the Year award, and is one of the finalists for induction into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. The final selections will be announced next month.

Wilkes stopped by the Orange County Register's main office in Santa Ana on Tuesday morning and took a quick timeout to answer a few questions.

Four-time NBA & two-time NCAA champion Jamaal Wilkes breaks down the NCAA tournament. Does he think another a team is capable of putting together a run like UCLA did in his day? Also, find out why he doesn't think Kentucky should be the clear-cut favorite.

Jamaal Wilkes, who won NCAA Championships with UCLA in 1972 and 1973, and won four more in the NBA, has been selected as a finalist for induction into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.

Finalists must receive 18 of 24 votes from the Honors Committee to gain induction.

Wilkes arrived at UCLA and was on the winning side of the first 75 games in which he played, helping the Bruins build their 88-game winning streak. He averaged 15 points, 7.4 rebounds, and shot 51.4 percent from the field.

He went on to the NBA where he spent 12 years with Golden State, the Lakers and Clippers. Of his four NBA championships, three were with the Lakers and the other was with Golden State.